Polygram Holding, Inc. v. Federal Trade Commission
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
416 F.3d 29 (2005)
Relevant factsFree
PolyGram and Warner (defendants), which separately distributed recordings of earlier Three Tenors concerts, agreed to jointly distribute a new 1998 concert recording and to a moratorium on advertising or discounting their older recordings so those sales wouldn't cut into the new release; the FTC (plaintiff) found this moratorium agreement violated antitrust law, and the companies appealed, arguing it benefited the long-term sales of all three recordings.
IssueFree
Whether, if it is obvious that a restraint of trade likely impairs competition, there is a rebuttable presumption that the restraint is unlawful.